Got A Lot of Livin' To Do
by Fayre Vala
Summary: What happens when we mash up these two heart-felt stories about sisterly love? A bit of angst and a ton of fluff, as it turns out... A series of short snapshots into the lives of Anna, Elsa, Nani, Lilo, and the rest of the gang as they navigate what it means to be a make-shift family. AU set in Hawaii post-films.
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note: Please just suspend disbelief a bit with me. =]**

* * *

"If only there was someone out there who loved you."

That's it, the final straw. Lilo pounces on Mertle, the other little girls screaming and running away from the scene as Kumu rushes forward to break up the fight. He plucks them apart effortlessly, and immediately Mertle wriggles free and follows her friends outside, leaving Lilo to face her punishment. Kumu Moses takes one look at the young girl's stricken and defeated face before shaking his head gently. He knows it's not her fault, but the parents will be there soon. Probably best to handle it himself. "Maybe you should go home, Lilo." She rushes off without another word.

* * *

"So how was school today?" Anna and Lilo sit at the usual table in the back of the luau. Anna's textbook pile teeters precariously in front of her, but she ignores it and pauses in her writing to take a sip of chocolate milk shake.

"Mmmmm," is all she gets in reply.

"That good, huh?" Another approach. "What about Stitch? Where is he?"

She gets a shrug.

"Yeah, you're right. He and Olaf are probably off chasing ducks or something." She giggles. "Once, I caught them following a whole family of them, and Stitch was flapping all four of his arms, _snarling_, while Olaf tried to… to…" No reaction. _Okay…_ Anna clears her throat. "Weren't you telling me the other day about a new dance move you learned in hula?"

The little girl stiffens. Ah, there it is.

"You know, one of the perks of me watching you while our sisters work is that I can help you!" Anna beams brightly over her notebook and ruffles Lilo's hair playfully.

Lilo sighs dramatically and throws her spoon down. "Nobody can help me…" She slinks down her chair and lands under the table cloth, completely hidden.

Anna glances nervously over to where Nani is taking an order, grateful that she hasn't chosen that moment to glance over to find her sister missing from the table. She scans the restaurant for her own sister, who's busy balancing a few trays as she weaves in and out of the crowded patio. "You know, Lilo, I used to know someone who thought the same thing. That she had to bear all her burdens alone. But luckily for her, for all of us, she learned that it's only through loving and working with others that we can help ourselves." Anna leans over and pins the table cloth out of the way under a plate to reveal Lilo clutching her knees to her chest. "What happened?"

Lilo sucks in a deep breath. "Mertle said something again…"

"That girl!" Anna's face burns and she punches her fist into her hand. "I swear, someone needs to shove a handful of snow right in her…" Anna stops when she sees Lilo's raised eyebrow. "Ah, I mean, um… Continue?" Anna crosses her arms to keep from gesticulating more, and sits back, ready to listen.

"She said no one really loved me."

"Oh, Lilo…"

"I know! I know it's not true! Nani loves me, and Stitch, and Jumba and Pleakley… Sometimes I even catch Mr. Bubbles smiling. But…"

"But what?"

"It… just reminded me of when I thought it was true."

Anna's heart constricts. Lilo should be too young to understand the full gravity of what she's just said. And yet... she's not. Looking down at her, it's like looking in a mirror. There are still times, even now, that Elsa says something and, without meaning to, brings everything from Anna's childhood crashing back to her. Seeing how tiny Lilo is, Anna realizes just how small she had been when it seemed like her world was ending. Kids that age shouldn't have to deal with such heavy burdens. But then there was Elsa, and Nani, too, sacrificing everything for their younger siblings, dealing with their own demons, and a knowledge that only older sisters have to bear.

"Things get better..." Anna finally says.

"I know that."

"So, what changed for you?"

Lilo smiles her classic mischevious grin. "I bought Stitch! Duh." The little girl sticks out her tongue and crawls back up onto the chair. Anna sticks her own tongue out as Lilo picks up her spoon again and shovels a mouthful of ice cream into her face.

"So, if you know it's not true, why all the theatrics?"

"It's not theatrics. It's a way of life," Lilo deadpans.

Anna rolls her eyes, but smiles. "_Okaaay_, why all the 'mopey-Lilo' antics, then?"

"Cuz… I was annoyed? It hurts when Mertle says stuff like that, because… it's still hard for me not to think that too."

Anna doesn't know when she sought Elsa out in the crowd again, but her eyes roam until she finds the platinum braid. "Yeah. I know how that feels."

Lilo follows her line of sight and snorts. "No you don't. You and Elsa get along great! My sister keeps talking about you two like you're the best thing to happen since _Elvis in Concert_ came out on DVD! Even _David_ is getting annoyed!" Lilo waves her spoon wildly and ice cream flies through the air, landing in a patron's dinner plate.

Anna stifles a laugh by stuffing her face with another gulp of milk shake. "Well that's… kind of her? But that's all surface stuff. We love each other, so much, and we've spent a lot of the last year making up for lost time, but every family has their ups and downs."

"Oh. You mean," Lilo hides her mouth behind her hand and whispers, "the_ ice_ thing you told us about."

Anna nods. "But since then, too. Elsa… I think she wants me to transfer to a 'better' college."

Lilo's head snaps up. "But you can't! Who am I gonna laugh at for crashing into waves when you surf if you leave?"

Anna blushes. "I don't want to, and believe me, we're gonna keep talking it out, but… I think I see her point. She just wants what's best for me, and in her mind, that would be the best education."

"But then…" Lilo scoots closer in her chair. "Wouldn't you be apart from each other?"

"Yeah. We would." Lilo's face darkens. "But it wouldn't be the same as… before…" Anna splutters.

Lilo stands on her chair and pushes her face into Anna's, squinting her eyes up at her. She's not buying it. "Ohana means family, family means nobody gets left behind. Or forgotten."

Anna sighs. She's heard this saying about a thousand times, but she's not about to deny the fact that it's true. "I'm not gonna leave Elsa behind."

"Good." And she plops down into her chair once more.

Anna takes her pen up again and tugs her history text closer. She smiles. "You know a lot about love for someone your age."

Lilo just shrugs. "I consider myself to be something of a love expert."

Anna drops her pen. "Have you been talking to the trolls?"

"What trolls?"

"Olaf then, it must have been Olaf…"

"What are you talking about? You're acting all weird…"

"It can't have been Kristoff, you almost never see each other!"

"_Annaaaaaaaaa_…"


	2. Chapter 2

**Note**: Written for my lovely friend Helen over on tumblr. This is to make up for the horridly depressing fic I posted earlier!

* * *

The summer heat is scathing, but Olaf couldn't love it more. While Elsa works the lunch shift and Anna skips off to class, Olaf often wanders down to the beach with a smoothie and a pink beach umbrella, his personal snow flurry bobbing along above him to keep him perpetually frozen. Today is very much like those days, and Olaf finds himself trotting down the sandy path from the road down to the shoreline, Anna's hug as she left still bringing a dazzling smile to his face.

Stumbling through the sand toward his usual spot (the shiftiness of the beach makes walking with his stubby little legs difficult), Olaf hums to himself a tune he picked up from the radio. He pitches his umbrella, spreads out in the shade and goes to take a loooong sip of his smoothie…

A snarl sounds immediately above him.

"Oh, hello Stitch, how are you tod-AYYYYY?"

Stitch grabs Olaf's arm and yanks him off along the path, the smoothie spilled in the sand below the now abandoned pink umbrella. "Ohhhhh, but I was looking forward to that…"

"No time. Jumba has problem."

Olaf gasps. "Oh no! What kind of problem?"

"Won't say. But did say it's about love. Lilo says snowman is love expert. Help?"

"Oh my goodness, yes! But uh, Stitch?"

The blue alien perks an ear back to say he's listening.

"Would you mind letting me go? My arm is very fragile…"

"Ah! Oh. Sorry." Stitch immediately lets go and together they bound along the roads and up the hill until they reach Lilo and Nani's house.

When they arrive, Jumba and Pleakley are arguing, as usual.

"Well how do you expect us to help when you won't tell us what's going on?"

"I can't, I can't, it's too embarrassing!"

"Jumba, you're an evil genius who created countless alien experiments, and you expect me to believe you're embarrassed over…"

"Stitch brought snowman!"

The bickering stops as Stitch kicks in the door, followed by Olaf. "Hi everybody! Does someone need a warm hug?"

Jumba harrumphs and collapses on the couch, which buckles a bit under his weight.

"Oh. Uh… aren't we a happy bunch?" Olaf attempts to joke. Pleakley rolls his eye and points a finger at Jumba.

"Please talk some sense into him! I can't take this any more!"

Stitch's ears twitch. "Lilo says snowman is love expert. He can help."

Jumba's head perks up. "A love expert… Yes! Thank you 626! Olaf, please come down the hall where we can talk…"

"What's wrong with right here?" Olaf blinks innocently.

"I had rather hoped to sort this out as privately as possible…"

Pleakley gives Olaf a look that said "See? See how difficult he is?" But Olaf knows what to do.

"Jumba, I am just one lowly snowman who hasn't lived on Earth for very long. I know you are all aliens, but you have been here longer than I have! If anyone will be able to help you with your problem, it's probably either Pleakley or Stitch."

"Well said!" Pleakley pipes up.

Seeing that he is getting no where with this group, Jumba sighs dramatically and says, "Fine! Fine, I will tell you. But you must swear to secrecy everything that I say from this moment onward. Do you understand me?"

Variations of "yes" are said by all.

"All right. I, Jumba Jookiba, have… a date."

"Ohh! A date!" Olaf claps his hands together for a moment, then stops. "What's a date?"

"YOU have a DATE? With a HUMAN?" Pleakley splutters before clutching his head and swaying on the spot.

"See? SEE? This is why I wanted to say nothing!"

"Jumba, it'll be all right! We'll help you out, not a problem! What are you doing for this date?"

The giant alien's cheeks went a bit pink. "We're going to the park before having lunch together on the beach."

"Oh, sounds so romantic! So what's the issue?"

"Well… I don't know… what to sdfkjl." Jumba finishes in a tiny voice.

"You don't know what?"

"I DON'T KNOW WHAT TO WEAR."

"Well what's wrong with what you have on?" Pleakley says while fanning himself.

Jumba looks down at his Hawaiian print shirt and says, "This is too informal! Dates are supposed to be fancy occasions, where you look your best! I couldn't possibly…"

"So what you're saying is you need something new." Pleakley offers.

"Ah! Ah! Stitch knows!" The blue alien hops up and down for a second before running into the kitchen. There is a loud CRASH, and a second later he emerges with the curtains, rod and all, a fabric in a green wheat print. Chucking it to the floor, he pads up the hallway, rummages in an unseen room for something, and comes back toting Nani's sewing machine. He plops down in the middle of the floor and sets to work.

"Does he do this often?" Olaf whispers from the side of his mouth.

Pleakley shrugs. "You get used to it."

About ten minutes later, Stitch whips the fabric off the machine, carefully cuts the threads with his pair of mini-scissors, and cries, "DONE." He tosses it to Jumba, who catches it skeptically.

"What in the name of Meega is this supposed to be?" And when he holds up the lump of fabric, it takes everything in Olaf not to laugh. Pleakley doesn't hold it together so well.

The green mass of wheat fabric is fashioned into some sort of Greek tunic, which is possibly the most hideous garment any of them have ever seen. "Yechhh, never mind," Stitch says, and snatches the tunic out of Jumba's hands.

"Pleakley, where's that old wig of yours? I'll just wear that instead." Jumba says, voice despairing.

"Oh Jumba, don't worry, I'm sure what you're wearing will be fine! Maybe you could bring something along that would help? What do you use to show affection…? Ohhh! Flowers! I'll be right back." Olaf rushes outside and down the steps to where he knows Lilo planted some flowers a few months ago.

As he bends down to pluck a daisy, he hears a faint quack somewhere to his left. Turning his head, he gasps in delight, all thoughts of flowers driven from his mind. When he arrives back in the house, toting the family of ducks along with him, he is convinced that this will win Jumba's date over.

"Look what I found! Or should I say, who I found!" As if to announce themselves, the ducklings begin a chorus of cheerful quacking, the mother duck sitting contentedly in Olaf's arms.

Pleakley's face lights up, Jumba looks a little wary, but Stitch rounds on Olaf. "No! No no no, duck family stay outside!"

"What's wrong Stitch? Jumba could take these little guys to play with—"

"Duck family stay in home! Stitch make home just for them! They stay!"

Olaf is crestfallen. "Oh, okay, I just thought—"

"Back outside! Outside!" Stitch tries to make a grab for the ducks, but out of fear they wriggle out of Olaf's (skinny and very escapable) arms, scattering every which way. They waddle into the kitchen and out into the hallway.

"Ohhhhh look at the way they run! How adorable! Quack! Quack!" Olaf chases one of them into the kitchen, his twig fingers outstretched, and scoops the little duckling up, nuzzling him.

Pleakley is flipping out. "We have to get them back outside! I think some of them went upstairs!"

"Oh, nonsense. They're too young to fly, they couldn't possibly—" Jumba starts, but then a loud boom sounds from upstairs, and every last one of them rushes toward the staircase.

They spend the better part of an hour tracking down every last duckling. Some had found their way into the bath tub, some were in Lilo's toy chest (the source of the boom as toys had fallen everywhere), they even found one cuddled up under Nani's pillow. By the the time they have all settled back into their home among the reeds outside, Jumba has run out of time.

"She'll be here any minute, and I still have no idea what I'm doing!" Jumba throws up his hands to the heavens.

"Oh Jumba, don't worry. I'm sure she'll like you just the way you are!" Olaf pats him on the knee.

As if on cue, the doorbell rings.

There is a frenzy as Jumba shoves Pleakley, Olaf and Stitch into the kitchen to hide. "I told her I lived alone, just stay in there and don't make a sound!" He shuts the door behind him.

Olaf presses his head against the keyhole, Pleakley above him, Stitch below him. They're all listening, but all that comes out are muffled voices.

"Can you hear anything?" Olaf whispers up to Pleakley.

"Not a thing. You?"

Olaf shakes his head.

Stitch wriggles out from under him and walks out of the kitchen for a minute, before popping out and waving them over to him. They huddle up around the corner, peaking their eyes out from the hallway and into the living room, where they can see Jumba's massive frame blocking the front door.

"Shall we get going, then?" They hear a feminine voice drift in from outside.

"Oh, she sounds pretty, I bet she's pretty!" Olaf hops up and down.

"Yes, yes, uh, let me grab my sunglasses!" Jumba fumbles around on the table beside the door and catches them peaking, but instead of looking furious, he has a goofy grin on his face that only makes Olaf's heart warm. Shooting them a thumbs up, Jumba shoves his shades onto his face and leaves the house.

Olaf runs out into the living room, jumping for joy. "Hooray! I told him he'd do well just being himself!"

Pleakley slinks onto the couch in exhaustion. "I'm just glad it's over with. I don't think I could have taken much more adventure…"

They spend the rest of the afternoon together, waiting for Jumba to return from his date, but Nani returns home on her dinner break first.

"Hey guys… Oh, hey Olaf! What are you doing…" She stops short. It's just then that Olaf realizes the mess they made, fabric scraps and duck feathers strewn across the floor, the curtain rod unceremoniously ripped away from the window.

"Uh oh."

"STITCH!"


	3. Chapter 3

For Rachel, because she's the sweetest!

* * *

"Order up!"

"Gosh, I can't believe how slammed we are tonight." Elsa heaves a giant tray of dirty dishes onto the counter next to the sink and wipes a brow.

"Tourist season is always the worst. Especially when the cruise ships come in." Nani loads her own tray up with her customer's meals. "Ai, watch it!"

A couple plates slide off the slippery counter next to Elsa and almost clatter to the ground, but instead land in a pile of snow. Nani can see a flash of shame and paranoia cross Elsa's face, but it passes quickly. No one is around to notice.

"Hey, you know no one minds, right? With aliens living on our island, no one thinks twice about a little magic ice."

Elsa sighs as though she's heard it before. She probably hears it five times a day from Anna, and countless times from her own conscience. "I know. It just… takes some getting used to. People knowing, that is. I don't want to be treated any differently for it."

"Fair enough. Better get your plates, though, this counter's getting crowded." Elsa hurries to grab another tray to load up and Nani leaves the kitchen for the patio.

Nani's just on her way back to the kitchen for another round of delivery when the hostess pulls her aside.

"Hey, Nani, I'm really sorry, but you've got the big table in the back."

"What? That's not even in my section!"

"I know, but we're short-staffed tonight, and you're the best…"

"Ha, if only the boss thought so…"

"You are though. Please don't hate me?"

"Nah, I'll just…" Nani glanced over at the large party table. Cruise shippers have stuffed themselves around it in a giant clump of noise and possibly hostile hunger. "I'll deal with it."

The hostess gives her a sympathetic look as she steels herself and walks toward the back, plastering on a fake smile.

"Welcome to the Luau, my name is Nani, and I will be serving you tonight. Can I get you started with some drinks," she rattles off to the nearest family. A hulking man sits next to an elegant woman with long, dark hair, who seems to be wrestling with three triplet boys squirming in their chairs. Nani fights to not sigh with frustration. _It's going to be a long night_, she thinks to herself.

"Aye, yes, we will have the Family Platter, with a side of… what is 'poi?'" The hulking man booms in a foreign dialect that Nani hasn't heard anywhere but on TV. She notices a girl about Elsa's age with wild red hair laughing behind her hands, whether in embarrassment or some sort of inside joke she's shared with this man (her father?), Nani can't tell.

"Da, they told us on the boat about a hundred times!"

"Aye, I know that, but I can't remember!"

"It's one of the staple foods of the Pacific, and you can eat it on its own or with the other…" But no one is really listening to Nani's explanation, as two of the triplets disappear under the table and the mother berates them. Nani sighs. "I'll just come back with six waters and the Family Platter, how about that?" The father gives her a sheepish grin and nods, handing her back the menu. Before going to take orders from the rest of the table, Nani glances at the daughter, who's staring off in the distance, a kind of wistful longing on her face. Nani follows her gaze…

Elsa and Nani end up having about ten minutes to themselves as their customers eat, and they spend it in the back, propping their feet up on the table.

"I don't think I'll ever get used to this dinner rush." Elsa rubs her aching feet, trying to bring some life back to them.

"It's pretty bad tonight, even for the season. But I've noticed you've also been picking up a lot of extra shifts. Is everything okay?"

Elsa tenses a bit, and ice creeps up the windowpane. "It's obvious?"

Nani raises an eyebrow. "You're more tired than usual, every time I get to work you look like you've been here for hours, and… well…" She gestures to the frosty windows. "What's up?"

Elsa bites her lip. "I…"

"Come on, Elsa, you know you can tell me anything."

Elsa nods and takes a breath. "I've just been feeling kinda… lonely… I guess."

Nani gives her a look that says, "Go on."

"Well, Anna's got her classes during the day, and then watches Lilo here while we work. On the weekends, she spends time with Kristoff, and he's really grown on me, I can see that he's good for her, so that makes me happy. And Olaf is always wonderful to spend time with, but…"

"You need more than just two people in your life. I get it."

"I know that seems selfish."

Nani laughs. "Elsa it's the opposite of selfish. You're allowed to need people. It's kinda what we're designed to do? Need each other?"

A smile plays at the corners of Elsa's mouth. "I know…"

"Besides, you've got me! You can come over any time, honestly. I could use a break from all the weird that goes on in my house."

"Oh no, I wouldn't want to impose…"

"Hey, none of that. Listen, next time you're in the house alone, I want you to call me, and you, me and David can go out for a drink or something."

"Now that really would be imposing."

"I'm not listening!" Nani sticks her fingers in her ears and her tongue out at Elsa, who laughs out loud, not bothering to hide her laughter behind her hand.

"Okay, okay, I'll call you!"

Nani smiles, triumphant. "Good. You haven't lived until you're the awkward third wheel for someone, anyway." Elsa laughs again. "So Anna's spring break is coming up this week, what's she gonna do?"

Elsa shrugs. "Not sure yet. I've been thinking of taking a few days off to spend some time with her."

Nani playfully swats at Elsa's arm. "See? There you go. Much needed sister time. If only I could get a few days off myself, we could make a real party of it."

When they finally emerge off their break, a few tables have emptied and things have quieted down considerably. Nani collects checks from other tables before wandering back toward the cruise shipper table.

"How was everything?" She plasters on a smile, but can see that even the rowdier customers have settled with their full stomachs. The burly Scotsman from earlier pats his belly and gives a roar of laughter.

"I haven't eaten like that since we had the three families over for the Highland games!" The three boys are running around the table, chasing each other and stealing un-eaten bits of food from some of the other's plates. Nani grimaces, but turns back to the father.

"Would you like some dessert? We've got a variety of-"

"Oi! Watch out!" The daughter reaches out across the table, but the damage is done.

The triplets have dumped an entire pitcher of water on Nani's head.

"BOYS! APOLOGIZE. NOW." The mother grabs the three of them by the wrists and hauls them off to a private corner, as the father looks shocked and whispers, "I think we'll just uh, take the check."

Nani nods once and stalks off to the back.

She's about half-way across the patio before she hears, "Hang on!"

Nani whirls around as she wrings her hair out to see the fire-haired daughter rushing toward her. Nani braces herself for another random attack but instead finds money thrust in her hand.

"My da said to give this to you. As a tip." She sighs. "As an apology. My brothers are rowdy little buggers, and I'm really sorry about them."

Nani rolls her eyes. "How do your parents keep up with them?"

The redhead laughed. "A lot of shoving them off outside to play. We're going camping while we're here, I'm hoping that they get worn out so I can be left in peace."

Nani laughs. This girl seems pretty normal. "Hey, what's your name?" Nani asks.

"Merida. And you're Nani, right?"

"Yeah."

"Say…" Merida's looking off into the distance again. "Um, this might be an awkward question but… That girl you work with? The blonde? What's her name?"

Nani follows her gaze to find it resting on her friend serving another table across the patio.

"Oh, the one with the braid over there?" Merida nods. "Her name is Elsa."

"Elsa…" Merida repeats distractedly.

"Yeah, she's relatively new to the area. Why, do you…?" Nani lets the sentence drift off. The answer to her unfinished question is spelled out plain as day on Merida's face. Remembering her conversation with Elsa a few minutes ago, Nani suddenly gets a very devious idea.

"Say, you said you're going camping?"

A few minutes later, Nani's in the back drying her hair out with a towel, a wicked grin on her face. Elsa bursts through the double doors with her tray. "I just heard what happened! Are you okay?"

Nani shakes her head out. "Yeah. I'm not the Wicked Witch, a little water's not gonna kill me."

Elsa smiles a little, but her brows furrow. "That's still awful. No one deserves that."

"Thanks you, really, but I'm okay."

"All right, just making sure." Elsa loads up her tray with some carefully plated slices of cake.

"Hey, actually, I was doing some thinking," Nani interjects. Elsa's eyes meet Nani's to say she's listening. "What if we went camping for Anna's spring break?"

Elsa stops. "Camping?"

"Yeah, what if me and Lilo take you guys camping as kind of a thank you?"

Elsa gives her a look that says, "Come on," before actually saying, "A thank you for what? We haven't done anything."

"Oh please. Anna watches Lilo _every single day_ after her classes."

"David is teaching her how to surf, and she's assured me that that's plenty of thanks."

"Well, okay then, how about we go in honor of you?"

Elsa's eyes widen. "Me?"

"Yeah! Come on, you've been a god-send for me. You're… well you're my best friend." Elsa's face flushes a brilliant scarlet. "And because of that, I want to take you guys camping!"

"That's… incredibly sweet of you. But is it safe? Out in the wild?"

Nani laughs so hard she doubles over. "The wild? Elsa, where do you think we're going? Lilo and I grew up on this island, we know it like the back of our hand, we're not gonna lead you guys off the beaten path."

Elsa flushes in embarrassment. "I'm sorry, I didn't know…"

"Nah, it's okay, it was just funny. And heck, let's bring the guys! I'm sure Kristoff could use a few days off from work, and David always wants to spend time with us. We'll make Anna's spring break one to remember!"

Nani can see that Elsa's warming up to the idea. "What about Lilo's school?"

"Her spring break is next week too." She can see that Elsa is running out of excuses. "Come on, I know you want to say yes…"

Elsa suddenly smiles from ear to ear. "All right. It sounds like a lot of fun. I know Anna's been wanting to explore the island more, anyway."

"Perfect."


End file.
